Irish Slavery Reviews

White Cargo by Don Jordan and Michael Walsh - Mainstream Publishing

Don Jordan and Michael Walsh have produced an excellent review of the trade in human cargo from Ireland and England in the 17th Century. Up to 300,000 people, mostly politicial prisoners, the poor, vagrants and street children across England and Ireland were forcibly rounded up and shipped to America where they became slaves in all but name. The book covers the role of the slave trading routes as people were transported from Bristol in slave ships to be bought and sold on arrival in the New World.

Described by the Times as "An eye-opening and heart-rending story", the book is briskly written in a journalistic style. Author Don Jordan is a television producer and director who has worked on dozens of documentaries and dramas. He also co-produced and co-wrote Love is the Devil, a film about the life of Francis Bacon. Michael Walsh spent twelve years as a reporter and presenter on World in Action and has won six awards for his work.